Debugger
The Problem With Relying on ‘Wirecutter’ Reviews
Trying to buy the best of everything is actually the worst
When I’m making major purchases, my obsession with buying the very best product can be… the worst. I’ll research bizarre specifications (like the types of backlighting for 4K TVs) for hours, read reviews, and ensure I’ve exhausted all available options before actually hitting the buy button. I worry about the FOMO I might have if I make the wrong choice.
I wasn’t always this way. Just a few short years ago, I’d happily walk into an electronics store and buy the TV I liked most, with the handful of features I cared about, then take it home and enjoy it without considering the alternatives.
What happened to me was that I found a glorious product review website called Wirecutter, which painstakingly tests both the exciting and banal in almost every category. It has reviews of air beds, TVs, kitchen knives, printers — you name it. Now, every time I need to buy, say, a screwdriver or a tent, I begin with a single search: “best tent Wirecutter” to see if the site has the answer.
The Wirecutter’s premise is that there is a best option, and that it can be discovered through rigorous testing. And this idea has ruined me.
